History

History CurriculumHistory Resources

As with most things, C.S. Lewis had a unique view of history. For him, the really important bits were the stories—he makes a distinction between actual historical realities and the idealized versions of them handed down which make heroes and villains of mere men and women. It's not that the stories are completely false, but their value is for character-building, not as factual data.

The tales of George Washington's bravery in battle, coolness under pressure, rigorous truthfulness, and unflagging piety may accurately preserve the essence of his temperament and nobility, but not all of them are strictly historical. The point of these stories isn't to impart facts, however, it's to offer an example of goodness for the rest of us to emulate.

Getting the facts right is still important, though. As Christians, we can't afford to have a false understanding of "the old days." Mankind is fallen, and the story of his sojourn on Earth is filled with war, suffering, disease, unfaithfulness, pride and envy; a study of history that omits those elements is both false and useless. False, because it is incomplete, and useless, because it tells us nothing of the human condition or our current situation.

It's a bit of a mystery to us why non-Christians are motivated to study the past. For believers, the end goal isn't just acquisition of facts about events and cultures, it's the instillation of a thoroughly Christian worldview, an understanding of the course of the human endeavour as decreed and guided by God Himself.

The story of Jesus Christ is central. It is the only history story that fulfills the character-building element Lewis looked for, while remaining absolutely true in every detail. Man is fallen and he does struggle against God, but through Christ there is hope of redemption, a chance to connect heaven and earth through the Atonement. Christ is the ultimate example of God's providence.

In the Reformed tradition, God's sovereignty is a very big deal. According to the doctrine of divine decree, God has ordered all things that were, are and will come to be for His own good pleasure and glory. His hand is thus present everywhere, in the privatest private life and the most public and widespread crisis. God is in control, providentially guiding nations, men, and the entire cosmos.

This very doctrine is perhaps what best explains the humanist's interest in history (whether he be atheist, agnostic, pagan). Man's natural bent is to make himself the hero of the story, to show how people can sway the trajectory of all things. God's version is quite different, and the two are naturally in conflict. Resolution may only be found in Christ.

For, while God decrees and guides all things, He has also (paradoxically) decreed man's free will and personal responsibility. Men do change the course of kingdoms, but it is only through God's agency. A proper Christian study of history takes both truths into account, and tells the stories of good guys and bad guys through the light of everything God's Word says about human nature and divine control.

We encourage you to take great comfort and joy in your study of history. Read books, watch movies (carefully noting that a lot of the story is likely to be inaccurate in detail), go on fieldtrips to forts and battlefields and birthplaces. Most of all, talk about these things. The end goal, after all, isn't to know a bunch of trivia, but to understand what God has done and continues to do.

No one knows for sure what the end of history will look like, except that every knee in heaven and on earth will bow to the returned glorious Christ, who comes to judge the living and the dead. What we believe about Him will determine whether that culmination will be filled with joy or loathing (everyone will be terrified). He is the author of history, and its centerpiece; honor Him in your study of it.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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Stepping Stone: Totally True Adventures!
by Lori Haskins Houran
from Random House
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in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
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Abe's Honest Words
by Doreen Rappaport, illustrated by Kadir Nelson
from Disney-Hyperion
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Abraham Lincoln
A Rookie Biography
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Abraham Lincoln: A Man for All the People
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Road Trip: National Parks
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Ada Byron Lovelace and the Thinking Machine
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Adoniram Judson
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Adventures of Munford: Munford Meets Robert Fulton
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Adventures of Munford: The American Revolution
by Jamie Aramini
1st edition from Geography Matters
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Africa Is Not A Country
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unknown from Millbrook Press
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Ahoy There, Little Polar Bear
by Hans de Beer
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AIO Imagination Station Book #13
by Marianne Hering, Nancy I. Sanders
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AIO Imagination Station Book #15
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AIO Imagination Station Book #16
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Alexi's Secret Mission
by Anita Deyneka
from School of Tomorrow
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$3.00 (1 in stock)
Algonquin
by Natalie M. Rosinsky
from Compass Point Books
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
All the Children of the World
by Karen Mezek Leimert
First Edition from Nelsonword Publishing Group
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$6.40 (1 in stock)
All-of-a-Kind Family
by Sydney Taylor, illustrated by Helen John
from Yearling
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Alvin Ailey
by Andrea Davis Pinkney; illustrated by Brian Pinkney
from Hyperion Books for Children
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$3.60 (1 in stock)
Amazing Life of Benjamin Franklin
by James Cross Giblin
from Scholastic Inc.
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2001 NCTE Orbis Pictus Honor Book
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Amazing Pop-Up Pull-Out Space Shuttle
by David Hawcock
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$15.00 (1 in stock)
Amazing World Atlas
by Alexa Ward
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$10.00 (1 in stock)
America in the Time of Abraham Lincoln
by Sally Senzell Isaacs
from Heinemann Library
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
America in the Time of Lewis and Clark
by Sally Senzel Isaacs
from Heinemann-Raintree
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$6.00 (1 in stock)
America is....
by Louise W. Borden, illustrated by Stacey Schuett
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America the Beautiful
by Katharine Lee Bates, illustrated by Chris Gall
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America's Story 1
by Angela O'Dell
1st edition from Master Books
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America: A Patriotic Primer
by Lynne Cheney
from Simon and Schuster
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America: A Patriotic Primer
by Lynne Cheney
from Scholastic Inc.
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
American History for Young Students I
by Michelle Miller
from TruthQuest History
History Curriculum for 1st-5th grade
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American History for Young Students II
by Michelle Miller
from TruthQuest History
History Curriculum for 1st-5th grade
Cathy Duffy's 100 Top Picks
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$17.50 (1 in stock)
American Milestones: The U. S. Constitution (September 17, 1787)
by Carole Marsh
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American Milestones: World War II (1939-1945)
by Carole Marsh
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American Revolution for Kids
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Amzat and His Brothers
by Paula Fox (reteller), illustrated by Emily Arnold McCully
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$2.40 (1 in stock)
Ancient Civilizations: Greeks!
by Carmella Van Vleet, illustrated by Tom Casteel
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Ancient Egyptians
History Opens Windows
by Jane Shuter
Revised and Updated from Heinemann-Raintree
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$4.00 (2 in stock)
Ancient Greece
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And Then What Happened, Paul Revere?
by Jean Fritz & Margot Tomes
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Biography for 2nd-4th grade
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And Then What Happened, Paul Revere?
by Jean Fritz & Margot Tomes
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Biography for 2nd-4th grade
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Animals Robert Scott Saw
by Sandra Markle
from Chronicle Books
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Anno's Italy PB
by Mitsumasa Anno
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Anno's Journey
by Mitsumasa Anno
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Apprentice
by Pilar Molina Llorente
Reprint from Sunburst Book
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Aquila's Drinking Gourd
by Pamela Dell
from Tradition Books
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$3.20 (1 in stock)
Archaeologists Dig For Clues
Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science Stage 2
by Kate Duke
from HarperCollins
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$5.99 $4.00 (3 in stock)
Art of the Spanish in the United States and Puerto Rico
by Shirley Glubok
from Macmillan
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$5.00 (1 in stock)
Art Smart: Spot the Details and Find Out the Facts
Act from Dover Publications
for 1st-7th grade
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$9.99 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse
by Eric Carle
from Philomel Books
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$4.80 (1 in stock)
Ashanti to Zulu
by Margaret Musgrove, Leo & Diane Dillon
from Puffin Books
Word Books for 2nd-5th grade
1977 Caldecott Medal winner
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$7.64 $3.60 (1 in stock)
Astrid the Unstoppable
by Maria Parr, translated from the Norwegian by Guy Puzey
from Candlewick Press
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Astronauts on the Moon - Hallmark Pop-Up Book
by Al Muenchen and Stanley Hendricks
from Hallmark Publications
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$12.80 (1 in stock)
Athenians In the Classical Period
Life Long Ago
by Leonard Weisgard (pictures and text)
from Coward McCann
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$48.00 (1 in stock)
Auntie Anne
by Anne Beiler, illustrated by Freiman Stoltzfus
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
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B is for Beaver
by Marie & Roland Smith, illustrated by Michael Roydon
from Sleeping Bear Press
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B is for Bluegrass
Discover America State-by-State
by Mary Ann McCabe Riehle, illustrated by Wes Burgiss
from Sleeping Bear Press
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Baby Blessing
by Welleran Poltarnees
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Bad River Boys
by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve, illustrated by Bill Farnsworth
from Holiday House
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Balto and the Great Race
Totally True Adventures
by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel
1st Printing from Random House Books for Young Readers
for 1st-3rd grade
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Bears, Pirates and Silver Lace
by Anne B. Fisher; illustrated by Phil Nesbitt
from Binford & Mort Publishing
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Beatrice's Goat
by Page McBrier
Reprint from Atheneum
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$7.20 (1 in stock)
Ben Franklin
See and Read: Beginning to Read Biography
by Estelle Friedman, illustrated by James Caraway
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
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$12.00 (1 in stock)
Benjamin Franklin
by Edgar & Ingri d'Aulaire
from Doubleday & Company
Picture Book Biography for Preschool-3rd grade
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$5.60 (1 in stock)
Benjamin Franklin
Makers of America
by Ruth Cromer Weir, illustrated by Rus Anderson
from Abingdon Press
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$4.80 (1 in stock)
Benjamin in the Woods
Wonder Books Easy Reader
by Eleanor Clymer, illustrated by William Russell
from Wonder Books
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
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$5.60 (1 in stock)
Beyond the Ridge
by Paul Goble
from Aladdin Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Bible Lands Series - 2 volumes
by Martha Fisher, illustrated by Josephine Beachy, Rhoda Shenk, Christy Collins, Arlene Martin
from Rod & Staff Publishers, Inc.
for 1st-3rd grade
in Bible Study & Reference for Kids (Location: BIBR-STU)
$10.50 (1 in stock)
Bible Timeline Figures CD-ROM
from Geography Matters
for 2nd-6th grade
in Clearance: History & Geography (Location: ZCLE-HIS)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Big Book of History - Timeline Book
by Bodie Hodge, Ken Ham
from Master Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Timeline Resources (Location: HISRF-TIM)
$19.99 $15.00 (1 in stock)
Big Picture Bible Time Line
by Carol Eide - compiled
from Gospel Light Publications
for Grades 1st-6th
in Bible Study & Reference for Kids (Location: BIBR-STU)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Big Red Kangaroo
by Claire Saxby, illustrated by Graham Byrne
from Candlewick Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Bill of Rights in Translation
by Amie Jane Leavitt
from Capstone Press
for 2nd-4th grade
in Government & Civics Resources (Location: GOV-REF)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Biography of a Rhino
by Alice L. Hopf; illustrated by Kiyo Komoda
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$44.00 (1 in stock)
Bird's Eye View: The Natural World
by John Farndon and Paul Boston
from Words & Pictures
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Nature Study & Journaling (Location: NAT-GEN)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Black Island
Adventures of Tintin
by Herge
from Little, Brown & Company
Comic Book for 2nd-6th grade
in Adventures of Tintin (Location: COM-TIN)
$12.74 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Blackbeard's Last Fight
by Eric A. Kimmel, illustrated by Leonard Everett Fisher
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Pirates (Location: HISV-PIRATE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Blast Back!: The Civil Rights Movement
by Nancy Ohlin, illustrated by Roger Simo
from Scholastic Inc.
for 2nd-5th grade
in Civil Rights Movement (1955-1968) (Location: HISA-20CIV)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Book of Centuries (BC/AD Edition) - Hardcover
from Living Book Press
for 1st-12th grade
in Timeline Resources (Location: HISRF-TIM)
$11.00 (1 in stock)
Book of Composers
by Rebecca Manor
from Beautiful Feet Books
for 2nd-12th grade
in Beautiful Feet Books (Location: HISCUR-BFB)
$24.50 (1 in stock)
Boy Named FDR
by Kathleen Krull, illustrated by Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher
from Dragonfly Books
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Boy Who Held Back the Sea
by Thomas Locker
from Puffin Books
for 1st-3rd grade
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$7.64 $3.60 (2 in stock)
Boy Who Loved Math
by Deborah Heiligman, illustrated by LeUyen Pham
from Roaring Brook Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Breaking Into Print
by Stephen Krensky, illustrated by Bonnie Christensen
from Little, Brown & Company
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in History of Books & Language (Location: HISV-BOOK)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain
by Verna Aardema, illustrated by Beatriz Vidal
from Dial Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Brooklyn Bridge
by Elizabeth Mann
from Mikaya Press
for 2nd-5th grade
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$7.50 (1 in stock)
Buffalo Bird Girl
by S. D. Nelson
from Abrams Books for Young Readers
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.46 $4.80 (4 in stock)
Buttons for General Washington
by Peter & Connie Roop
from Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
for 1st-3rd grade
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
By the Dawn's Early Light
by Steven Kroll
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-4th grade
in War of 1812 (Location: HISA-19WET)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
California Plant & Animal Communities
by Barbara J. Collins
from California State Department of Education
for 2nd-4th grade
in Vintage Readers & Textbooks (Location: VIN-READ)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Can't You Make Them Behave, King George?
by Jean Fritz, illustrated by Tomie dePaola
from Coward McCann
for 2nd-4th grade
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Canada
Discovering Cultures
by Patricia J. Murphy
from Benchmark Books
for 2nd-4th grade
in Canada (Location: HISMC-CAN)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Canada Geese Quilt
by Natalie Kinsey-Warnock
from Cobblehill Books
Realistic Fiction for 1st-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Cassie's Journey
by Brett Harvey; illustrated by Deborah Kogan Ray
from Holiday House
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Oregon Trail (Location: HISA-19OR)
$4.00 (2 in stock)
Castles
by Miranda Smith
from Kingfisher
for 2nd-4th grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Castles
Usborne Beginners
by Stephanie Turnbull
from Usborne
for 1st-2nd grade
in Usborne Beginners (Location: SCI-USBREA)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
CD-ROM Fact Finders: Ancient Times
by Richard Tames, edited by Paul Harrison
from Zigzag
for 2nd-4th grade
in Ancient History (Location: HISW-ANC)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Changing Weather
by Ashlee Klemm, illustrated by Vanessa Toye
from The Good and the Beautiful
for 1st-3rd grade
in GATB Science & Health (Location: CUR-GABSc)
$6.00 (2 in stock)
Charles Darwin's Around-the-World Adventure
by Jennifer Thermes
from Abrams Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Charlie and Trike in the Grand Canyon Adventure
Green Notebook Series
by Ken Ham, Karen Hansel
from Master Books
for 1st-4th grade
in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS)
$14.39 $9.00 (1 in stock)
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